Dynamic adjustment of electronic program guide displays based on viewer preferences for minimizing navigation in VOD program selection

ABSTRACT

Items of video content offered for viewing on a video-on-demand (VOD) platform of a digital TV service provider are each assigned a respective title and hierarchical address corresponding to hierarchically-arranged categories and subcategories within which the title for the video content is to be categorized. The title is listed in a location of an electronic program guide (EPG) using the same categories and subcategories as its hierarchical address. Any TV subscriber can access the EPG and navigate through its categories and subcategories to find a title for viewing on the TV. The EPG dynamically adjust its display listings of each level of categories, subcategories, and titles in order to minimize the number of remote control keypresses needed for a viewer to navigate to a title of interest. In one basic form, the EPG display is reordered by listing more frequently visited categories or subcategories first, and other less frequently visited categories or subcategories lower on the listing or out-of-sight on another page of the display.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This U.S. patent application is a continuation application and claimsthe benefit of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/595,210,filed on May 15, 2017, which is a continuation application claiming thebenefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/002,029, filed on Jan.20, 2016 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,654,833 on May 16, 2017, which isa continuation application claiming the benefit of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 13/831,042, filed on Mar. 14, 2013 and issued asU.S. Pat. No. 9,247,308 on Jan. 26, 2016, which is a continuationapplication claiming the benefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/869,534, filed on Aug. 26, 2010 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,344,765on May 17, 2016, which is a divisional application claiming the benefitof U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/768,895, filed on Jun. 26, 2007and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,584,868 on Feb. 28, 2017. This applicationis further related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/685,188 filedon Mar. 12, 2007 and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,631,336 on Dec. 8, 2009,and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/909,192 filed on Jul. 30, 2004and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,590,997 on Sep. 15, 2009, all being by thesame inventor and incorporated in their entirety by reference as iffully set forth herein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention generally relates to the provision of video content toviewers through digital TV infrastructure, and more particularly, toconverting, navigating and displaying video content uploaded from theInternet on a digital TV video-on-demand platform.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

Cable television (CATV) systems are used to deliver television servicesto a vast majority of TV-viewing homes in the U.S. and othertechnologically advanced countries. The typical CATV system has a cableservice provider head end equipped with video servers to transmit CATVprogram signals through distribution cable lines to local nodes and fromthere to TV subscriber homes. Within the subscriber homes, the CATVinput TV line is connected to one or more customer-premises TVs whichare coupled to external set-top boxes for channel tuning or are equippedwith internal cable channel tuners. CATV service providers employ thespacious 1 GHz bandwidth of the typical cable (RG-6) line to carry tensof analog TV channels in the portion of the cable bandwidth allocated toanalog TV signals. With digital multiplexing methods such as QAM,hundreds of digital TV signals can be carried simultaneously in theportion of the cable bandwidth allocated to digital TV signals. Cable TVservice providers have also allocated portions of the cable bandwidthfor user (return) data, broadband data connection, and voice-over-IP(VoIP) digital telephone service.

Cable TV service providers generally offer subscribers to subscribe toany of several tiers of bundled TV services on a scale with increasingrates in accordance with signal quality, TV program offerings, and typesof interactive services. Digital TV services are offered throughadvanced digital set-top boxes that are individually addressable fromthe CATV head end, and also allow subscribers various interactivefunctions with the CATV head end via inputs to the set-top box via theremote control unit for transmission on the return data path to the CATVhead end.

A recent type of interactive television service offered on digital TVsystems is referred to generally as a “video-on-demand” (VOD) system,wherein a viewer can navigate through a program guide via the remotecontrol unit and send a request via the set-top box for a desired videoprogram to be addressed from the head-end to the subscriber's set-topbox for display on the TV. Different types of VOD programs are typicallybundled as a package and offered on different VOD “channels”. Forexample, a VOD “channel” can offer on-demand movies and videos, replaysports events, infomercials, advertisements, music videos,short-subjects, and even individual TV “pages”. VOD-based interactivetelevision services generally allow a viewer to use the remote controlto cursor through an on-screen menu and select from a variety of titlesfor stored video programs for individual viewing on demand. Advancedremote control units include button controls with VCR-like functionsthat enable the viewer to start, stop, pause, rewind, or replay aselected video program or segment. In the future, VOD-based interactivetelevision services may be integrated with or delivered with otheradvanced interactive television services, such as webpage browsing,e-mail, television purchase (“t-commerce”) transactions, and multimediadelivery.

Digital cable TV is currently the most prevalent system for offeringdigital TV services to home TV subscribers. However, other types ofdigital carriers offering broadband connections to subscriber homes haveentered into competition with cable TV providers by offering digital TVservices over their broadband connections. Examples of other broadbandconnections include DSL telephone lines, local area broadband networks,and wireless broadband networks. Digital television services offered onsuch broadband connections employ the TCP/IP data transport protocol andare referred to as Internet Protocol Television (IPTV). Instead ofmulti-casting all TV program signals into a cable line, the typical IPTVsystem will respond to a subscriber's request for a particular TVchannel or video program by transmitting the video content individuallyto the subscriber's individually addressable, digital set top box athigh speeds. IPTV and digital cable TV both transmit digital video inpacketized data streams within closed, proprietary broadband systems;however, IPTV uses the Internet Protocol (IP) to structure, route anddeliver the digital video packets within an IPTV system.

With the increasing interactive functionality and customer reach ofinteractive television services, advertisers and content providers arefind it increasingly attractive to employ on-demand advertising,on-demand program content, and on-demand TV transactions for homeviewers. VOD content delivery platforms are being designed to seamlesslyand conveniently deliver a wide range of types of advertising, videocontent, and transaction services on demand to home viewers. VOD contentofferings are expected to increase dramatically from a few “channels”with a few score or hundred “titles” listed on each today to scores orhundreds of channels with thousands if not millions of titles on each inthe foreseeable future. The VOD platform thus offers a gateway forgreatly expanding TV viewing from a relatively small number ofstudio-produced program channels to a large number of new commercialpublishers and ultimately a vast number of self-publishers or so-called“citizen” content publishers. It is deemed desirable to find a way forsuch vast numbers of content publishers to transmit their programs tothe home TV, and to enable home TV viewers to find something of interestfor viewing among the vast numbers of new programs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, a method for dynamicadjustment of an electronic program guide (EPG) for navigating to videocontent offered on a video-on-demand (VOD) platform of a digital TVservice provider comprises:

(a) maintaining a listing of category names for respective categories ofvideo content to which a viewer can navigate using the EPG for the VODplatform;

(b) tracking a viewer's past history of selections of category names forvideo content in the EPG and determining an order of relevance of thecategory names for viewer selection of video content based on said pasthistory; and

(c) reordering a current display listing of the category names based onsaid determined order of relevance.

In a preferred implementation, the order of relevance is determined inorder of frequency of selection of category names based on the viewer'spast history of category name selection. As an extension, order ofrelevance may be determined based on other parameters, such astime-of-day, weekday or weekend, or preference indicated by pastselections of TV program titles. The reordered EPG display listing maylist a predetermined number of category names of higher relevance, whilemaintaining all other category names of lower relevance out-of-sight onanother display page to be accessed by activating a “More” button.

Each title is categorized within hierarchically-arranged categories andsubcategories of the EPG which make up a unique hierarchical address forthe title. The hierarchical address may be represented by a string ofcategory and subcategory terms and the title delimited by standarddelimiters. The hierarchical address can be shared as bookmarks the TVprogram with other TV subscribers or friends or contacts on theInternet.

The reordering of category names is provided by linking the viewer froma generalized EPG for all viewers on the VOD platform to aviewer-individualized EPG. The viewer-individualized EPG is accessedthrough a LogIn step by which the individual viewer is identified. Inthe LogIn step, the viewers of a subscriber household can register theirnames and personal identification numbers (PIN) for quick logins. Theviewer-individualized EPG tracks the categories and subcategories theindividual viewer clicks on and adds it to the viewer's past history.The tracking continues until the viewer logs off or the TV viewingsession is ended. Besides reordering, the tracking of viewer navigationclicks and viewing preferences can be used to automatically createsubcategories of TV programs of the type most frequently clicked on bythe viewer, as well as for reordering in other VOD schema.

The present invention also encompasses an electronic program guide (EPG)for viewer navigation to titles for items of video content stored on avideo-on-demand (VOD) platform comprising:

(a) each item of video content being assigned a title and a hierarchicaladdress corresponding to hierarchically-arranged categories andsubcategories within which the title for the video content is to becategorized;

(b) a listing of at least a top level of category names for respectivecategories of video content maintained by the EPG for the video content;

(d) a viewer's past history of selections of category names for videocontent maintained in association with the EPG and used to determine anorder of relevance of category names for viewer selection of videocontent based on said past history; and

(e) a current display listing of category names for the EPG in which thecategory names are reordered based on said determined order ofrelevance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a diagram of an overall architecture for a VOD ContentDelivery System in accordance with the present invention, FIG. 1B showsan example of templatized Drill-Down Ad navigation, and FIG. 1C shows anexample of the templatized ad display model.

FIG. 2A is a process flow diagram of the overall architecture of aClassified Ad application for the VOD Content Delivery System, FIG. 2Billustrates a Content Management Website for the Classified Adapplication, FIG. 2C illustrates a Content Screening Component of thesystem, and FIG. 2D illustrates a Content Feed and Conversion Componentsof the system.

FIG. 3 is a diagram of a VOD Content Delivery System adapted to InternetProtocol TV (IPTV) system.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a process flow for enabling contentpublishers on the Internet to upload video content to digital televisionservice providers for viewing on the home TV.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating access to an individualized-viewer EPGfor tracking a viewer's past history of selection of EPG category namesand titles for reordering the EPG for faster navigation.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating implementation of the reordering of EPGdisplay listings using drill-down display templates for reordering theEPG navigation displays.

FIG. 7A is a process flow diagram of the overall architecture of anindividualized-viewer EPG as a user navigates the hierarchical levels ofprogram information. FIG. 7B is the continuation of FIG. 7A as the usernavigates further into the hierarchy. FIG. 7C is a diagram illustratingthe effects of usage data upon the order of content selections withinthe individualized-viewer-EPG display.

FIG. 8A is a diagram illustrating the recommendation to the user by theindividualized-viewer-EPG system of new EPG categories based on viewerbehavior. FIG. 8B is the continuation of FIG. 8A as the user navigatesfurther into the hierarchy.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

The following description describes one preferred embodiment forimplementation of the invention in which the digital television serviceprovider is one employing cable TV infrastructure. However, it is to beunderstood that the principles of the invention are equally applicableto other types of digital television service providers offering digitalTV services over other broadband connections such as DSL telephonelines, local area broadband networks, and wireless broadband networks.Similarly, certain examples of VOD applications are described herein,e.g., advertisements that are navigated in “drill-down” fashion, and theuploading of consumer-generated classified ads to be viewed as TVclassified ads. However, many other types of video content may be usedin programming with this system.

A VOD “channel” is a term commonly used for the mechanism by which usersaccess and view VOD content. “Channel” historically refers to linearbroadcast channels, and VOD by definition is a non-linear, on-demandexperience. When a user accesses a VOD “channel” on a digital televisionsystem, they are accessing a digital “virtual channel”, where the tuningof the channel number triggers the digital set top box to load andexecute an interactive application that is presented on the television.This application will present the categories, subcategories and titlesof VOD content that is available for viewing. The user navigates throughthe application using the remote control, traversing the hierarchy usedto organize the VOD content. When the user selects a VOD title forplayback, the digital VOD content is transmitted from a VOD server tothe set top box using a dedicated data stream. The actual mechanisms fortransmission vary for different digital television system technologies,but in all cases the stream is unicast to the specific set top box. Theset top box receives and decodes the data stream and presents the VODcontent on the television. A digital television system can support manyVOD “channels”, where each “channel” is an interactive application thatoffers VOD content that has been grouped together by topic, sponsor,content producer or other attributes. As available bandwidth increasesin digital television systems, there will be an increase in quantity ofthe VOD “channels” available to the user, as content producers migratefrom the linear broadcast format to the non-linear on-demand format.Correspondingly, as the processing power of set top boxes increases,combined with greater network bandwidth, the sophistication of theinteractive applications supporting VOD “channels” will increase,offering enhanced ways for interacting with the content and theproducer, as well as offer related content and materials, transactionsand other methods for engaging the user more completely with thecontent.

Referring to FIG. 1A, an overall system architecture for a VOD contentdelivery system includes a VOD Application Server 10 located at a CableHead End. The VOD Application Server 10 manages a Database 11 oftemplates and video content segments from Video Server 12 for generatingtemplatized VOD content. The VOD content is generated in response to aviewer request signal transmitted from the Digital Set Top Box 21 of aviewer's TV equipment through the Digital Cable Television System 13 tothe VOD Application Server 10 at the Cable Head End. The VOD ApplicationServer 10 may be of the type which enables any compatibly-developed VODapplications to be loaded on and operated on the server. An example ofsuch a VOD Application Server is the Navic N-Band™ server, offered byNavic Systems, Inc., d/b/a Navic Networks, of Needham, Mass. This is anintegrated system which provides an application development platform forthird party application developers to develop new VOD serviceapplications, viewer interfaces, and ancillary interactive services fordeployment on VOD channels of CATV operators in cable service areasthroughout the U.S. A detailed description of the Navic N-Band system iscontained in U.S. Patent Application 2002/066,106, filed on May 30,2002, which is incorporated herein by reference.

Templates for displaying VOD content are created at an Application DataCenter 30 and stored in the Database 11 for use by the operative VODapplication. The templates may be designed, for example, to presentvideo ad content displays in a logo frame, or to provide navigationbuttons and viewer selection options in a frame around currentlydisplayed video content. In the preferred embodiment described ingreater detail below, the templates are used to provide navigation aidsin a series of progressively more focused ad display types. A VideoContent Encoder 31 is used to encode raw video feeds into formattedvideo content segments compatible with the VOD platform and supply themthrough a Video Content Distribution Network 14 to the Video Server 12.

In operation, the VOD Application Server 10 operates a VOD applicationfor the CATV system, for example, “automobile infomercials on demand”.The viewer sends a request for selected VOD content, such as to see aninfomercial on a specific model type made by a specific automanufacturer, by actuating a viewer request signal by a key press on theviewer's remote control unit transmitting an IR signal to the Set TopBox 21 that is sent on a back channel of the Digital Cable TelevisionSystem 13 to the VOD Application Server 10 at the Cable Head End. Inresponse to the signal, the VOD Application Server 10 determines the VODcontent being requested and retrieves the infomercial ad displaytemplate from the Template Database 11 and video content segment fromthe Video Server 12, in order to generate the corresponding templatizedVOD content. In the invention, the templates are of different typesordered in a hierarchy, and display of content in a template of a higherorder includes links the viewer can select to content of a lower orderin-the hierarchy. Upon selecting a link using the remote control, theVOD Application Server 10 retrieves the template and video content oflower order and displays it to the viewer. Each successive templatizeddisplay may have further links to successively lower levels of contentin the hierarchy, such that the viewer can use the series of linkedtemplatized VOD displays as a “drill-down navigation” method to findspecific end content of interest.

Referring to FIG. 1B, a preferred embodiment of the templatized VODcontent delivery system is shown providing a User Interface usingDrill-Down Navigation through display ads, such as for automobileinfomercials. When the viewer selects a VOD application (channel), suchas “Wheels-On-Demand”, the viewer's TV displays a Main Menu with buttonsinviting the viewer to “Select Category”. The viewer can select an“Auto” category, and the TV then displays an “Auto” menu with buttonsinviting the viewer to “Select Make”, such as Make A, Make B, etc. Whenthe viewer makes a selection, such as Make A, the viewer's TV displays afurther menu that is a Gateway into templatized VOD content deliverywhich enables Drill-Down Navigation by templatized display ads. Throughthe Gateway, the VOD Application leaves the Menu mode and enters theDrill Down Navigation mode for successively displays ofhierarchically-ordered video content which allow the viewer to navigateto progressively more focused content. In this example, the highestlevel of the hierarchy includes categories for Model, Local Dealer,Sales Events, and/or Inventory. When the viewer selects a category suchas “Model” from the Gateway, for example, the VOD Application creates atemplatized ad display showing video content generic to all models bythat automaker framed in a frame which has links (buttons or choices)for a list of the specific models made by that automaker. When theviewer selects the link to a specific model, “Model A” for example, theVOD Application creates a templatized ad display showing video contentfor Model A, and the viewer can then choose to run a long-forminfomercial of the Model A video. Alternatively, the Drill-DownNavigation can continue with further levels of specificity, such as“Custom Packages”, “Options”, “Colors/Stylings”, etc. Similarly, theselection of the “Local Dealer” category from the Gateway can bring up atemplatized ad for local dealers with links to specific local dealers inthe viewer's cable service area, and a click on a specific “Dealer A”can bring up a templatized ad for Dealer A with further links to morespecific content pertaining to Dealer A, such as “Current SalesPromotions”, etc.

In this manner, the templatized VOD content delivery system allows theviewer to navigate to specific content of high interest to the viewerusing the Drill-Down ads as a navigation tool, while at the same timehaving a unique visual experience of moving through a series of adsmirroring the viewer's path to the subject of interest. The templatizedVOD ads are generated dynamically by searching the Content/Templatedatabase with each request by a viewer, enabling the system to displayupdated navigation choices and content simply by updating the databasewith updated links and video content. For example, if the Auto Makerchanges the Model types of autos currently available, or if Local DealerA changes its current sales promotions for autos currently available,that advertiser's ads can be updated with new, template frame navigationlinks and content, instead of entirely new ads or screen displays havingto be shot, produced, contracted, delivered, and programmed with thecable TV company. Many other types of layered or in depth ads, subjects,and interactive TV applications can be enabled with the use of theDrill-Down Navigation method. The selections or preferences exhibited byviewer navigation paths through the Drill-Down Navigation can also betracked, profiled, and/or targeted as feedback data to advertisers forfine-tuning Drill-Down Navigation designs.

In FIG. 1C, an example illustrates how a templatized VOD display isgenerated in layers. A Background screen provides a basic color, logo,or graphical theme to the display. A selected Template (display frame)appropriate to the navigation level the intended display resides on islayered on the Background. The Template typically has a frame in whichdefined areas are reserved for text, display image(s), and navigationlinks (buttons). Finally, the desired content constituted by associatedText, Image & Buttons is retrieved from the database and layered on theTemplate. The resulting screen display shows the combined backgroundlogo or theme, navigation frame, and text, video images, and buttons.

Referring again to FIG. 1A, a Tracking System 15 of conventional typecan be installed at the Cable Head End to aggregate non-personal data onwhat channels and programs viewers watch. For the Drill Down Navigationmethod, the Tracking System 15 can include tracking of the navigationpaths viewers use to find subjects of interest in a VOD Application. Theaggregation of viewer navigation data can indicate what subjects aremost popular, whether some subjects are of greater interest to viewersat certain times of day, of certain demographics, or in relation tocertain products or services. The VOD Application Server 10 can exportthe aggregated viewer navigation data to an external Profiling System16, such as a non-biased or unrelated firm applying profile analysismethods. The results of the Profiling System 16 can be communicated to aTargeting System 17, such as a template design firm or contentproduction company, to fine-tune the presentation of the templatized VODcontent consistent with viewer preferences or interests. The feedbackfrom the Targeting System can be supplied as feedback to the VODApplication Server to modify the Content/Template Database 11.

Another application for the templatized VOD content delivery system canbe developed to support video advertisements which link national tolocal market ad campaigns in “drill-down” fashion. Advertisers, bothnational and local, can pay for placement of their video advertisementson the system. When the VOD Application is run, the national ads aredisplayed as a Gateway to linking to the local market ads. In thismanner, national ads can be used to transition viewers from generalinterest in a product to finding specific information about the productavailable locally.

The templatized VOD content delivery system can also support “trafficbuilding” videos, including music videos, that may not generate directrevenue. Once a video is encoded and registered into the system, themanagement and distribution of the video is conducted through softwaresystems and automated controls. The User Interface provides the userwith the ability to navigate and find desired video content. Selectionof a category presents the user with a list of video titles availablefor playback. Categories and title lists can be generated usingreal-time database queries, allowing for database-driven management ofcontent within the User Interface. The User Interface can also support asearch interface which allows the user to search the video contentdatabase to generate a list of video titles with specificcharacteristics.

As another aspect of the present invention, a VOD content deliverysystem may be adapted to offer consumer-generated classified ads on TV.The VOD content delivery system is provided with a Content Managementfrontend to receive consumer input and convert it to video display adsmaintained in the system database. Referring to FIG. 2A, a system formanaging, converting and displaying individual consumer-generated ads ona VOD content delivery system has a Web-based Content Management System40 for enabling an individual user to upload content from their computervia a web browser to display a consumer-generated video ad on TV. Theuploaded content includes meta data for classifying the video ad bytitle and topical area(s). A Content Screening System 41 is used forscreening the content input by the individual user, such as byperforming automatic searching for objectionable text, audio, videoand/or images and rejecting the content if found objectionable.

A Content Feed System 42 is used to automatically transferconsumer-generated content screened through the Content Screening System41 to a Content Conversion System 43. This system automatically convertsthe consumer-generated content supplied by the Content Feed System 42into video display format compatible with the VOD content deliverysystem. The converted video ad is indexed by title and classifiedtopical areas according to the meta data supplied by the user, inaccordance with the indexing system maintained by the Content ManagementSystem. The VOD Content Delivery System 44 operates a Classified Ads VODApplication in which menus for finding classified ads are navigated byviewers, and specific classified ads are delivered through the DigitalCable Television System for display as video ads on the viewer's TVequipment in response to viewer request input by remote control to theDigital Set Top Box 21, as described previously with respect to theoperation of the general VOD platform.

Referring to FIG. 2B, the Web-based Content Management System 40includes a plurality of functional components to allow consumers tocreate and manage their own classified ads as interactive televisioncontent, as well as pay for the distribution of their content within thedigital cable television system. A Classified Management Application 50is used to receive consumer-input content, have it screened (by theContent Screening System 41, not shown), and store it in the ClassifiedMetadata, Image and Video Database 51. Consumer payment for runningvideo ads is handled by the Transaction Processing Component 53. Alsoincluded in the Content Management System are an Account ManagementComponent 55 and Account & Permissions Database 56 for management ofuser accounts for use of the web-based TV Classified Ads system. ABulletin Board Ads application may be operated in parallel with the TVClassified Ads application. A Bulletin Board Management Application 54and Database 57 enable the creation and management of consumer-generatedcontent relating to public announcements and other items of generalinterest for groups, organizations or topics. The preferred VOD ContentDelivery System uses templatized VOD content, and a Template Library 58is used to store templates for both the Classified Ads and BulletinBoard Ads applications.

The Account Management Component controls the access by persons to theweb-based Content Management System. The Account Management Componentidentifies persons accessing the system for the first time and allowsthese persons to register and create an account by providing an accountname, password, credit card information and other information requiredfor the payment of fees. The Account Management Component controls theaccess by registered users to their accounts and manages the privilegesand security associated to all accounts. Persons may create accounts forthe creation and management of Classified Ads. Accounts capable ofaccessing the Bulletin Board Management Application may also be assignedby a system administrator in the Account Management Component. Anyaccount capable of accessing the Bulletin Board application can thencreate and manage bulletin board ads for the assigned bulletin boards.

The Classified Content Management System enables users to upload text,audio, video, and/or image files for classified ads in industry-standardfile formats and have it converted into video display ads compatiblewith the VOD Content Delivery System. Classified ads are searched on theviewer's TV equipment by menus and lists indexed by title and topicalareas corresponding to the metadata associated with the classified adscontent. Selection of a listed item results in the display of a TVdisplay ad containing uploaded text, images, video and/or audio. Userspay listing fees to the operator of the system for maintaining anddisplaying the classified ads on the digital cable television system.

Significant features of the Classified Ads Content Management Systeminclude: (a) the ability to enter descriptive data and text regardingthe item; (b) uploading digital images of the item to the ContentManagement System; (c) uploading digital video of the item to theContent Management System; (d) uploading digital audio regarding theitem to the Content Management System; (e) automated size and resolutionprocessing of digital images uploaded to the system; (f) automateddigital format conversion of digital video uploaded to the system; (g)automated digital format conversion of digital audio uploaded to thesystem; (h) ability for users to select an interactive television screendesign (template) from a catalog of available templates; (i) ability toview on a web browser the interactive television template containing theconsumer-provided content; (j) ability to save classified content inpersistent memory or storage for subsequent modification; (k) ability tomark classified content as completed and ready for submission to theinteractive television system; (1) ability to specify the date and timewhen a classified content item is to become accessible by users of theinteractive television system and the data and time when a classifiedcontent item is to be removed from display on the interactive televisionsystem; (m) ability to notify the user through email or othercommunication system that a specific content item is scheduled to bedisplayed or removed from the interactive television system; (n) abilityto modify and resubmit previously created classified content for displayon the interactive television system; (o) ability to access viewing datagenerated by the Tracking System regarding access and use of specificconsumer-generated content by users of the interactive televisionsystem; and (p) ability to calculate fees for classified content andsubmit payment of the fees using the Transaction Processing system.

As noted in (i) above, the Classified Content Management System allowsthe user to view the content they have composed using the templates. Thetemplates are designed specifically for use on interactive televisionsystems and the user is able to view on the web-interface their contentas composed for presentation on television. As noted in (j) above, theClassified Content Management System allows the persistent storage ofclassified content; although the user is composing interactivetelevision pages using a template system, the content is persistentlystored as individual elements to simplify changes by the user and toallow the conversion of the content to different formats as required bydifferent interactive television systems.

The Bulletin Board Content Management System provides the users of theweb-based Content Management System with content creation and contentmanagement tools for the creation and maintenance of consumer-generatedcontent related to announcements and other informational items ofgeneral interest. Bulletin Board content is displayed on the interactivetelevision system as dedicated interactive television screens (bulletinboards), where approved groups, organizations or topics are eachassigned a bulletin board for the display of their information. BulletinBoard content is displayed as list items organized within a bulletinboard; selection of a list item results in the display of an interactivetelevision screen containing or providing access to the descriptivedata, text, images, video and audio regarding the item.

An alternative implementation of a Bulletin Board can display thecontent as scrolling text, where the user scrolls through the text, orthe text scrolls automatically. Bulletin Board accounts will pay feesdetermined by the operator of the system for the distribution of thebulletin board content on the interactive television system for displayon the digital cable television system. Significant features of theBulletin Board Content Management System include: (a) the ability toenter descriptive data and text regarding the item; (b) upload digitalimages to the content management; (c) upload digital video to thecontent management system; (d) upload digital audio to the contentmanagement system; (e) automated size and resolution processing ofdigital images uploaded to the system; (f) automated digital formatconversion of digital video uploaded to the system; (g) automateddigital format conversion of digital audio uploaded to the system; (h)ability for users to select an interactive television screen design(template) from a catalog of available templates; (i) ability to view ona web browser the interactive television template containing theconsumer-provided bulletin board content; (j) ability to save bulletinboard content in persistent memory or storage for subsequentmodification; (k) ability to mark bulletin board content as completedand ready for submission to the interactive television system; (1)ability to specify the date and time when specific bulletin boardcontent is to become accessible by users of the interactive televisionsystem and the data and time when specific bulletin board content is tobe removed from display on the interactive television system; (m)ability to notify the user through email or other communication systemthat specific bulletin board content is scheduled to be displayed orremoved from the interactive television system; (n) ability to modifyand resubmit previously created bulletin board content for display onthe interactive television system; (o) ability to access viewing datagenerated by the Tracking System regarding access and use of specificbulletin board content by users of the interactive television system;and (p) ability to calculate fees for bulletin board content and submitpayment of the fees in conjunction with the Transaction Processingcomponent.

The Transaction Processing component allows users of the ClassifiedContent Management System and Bulletin Board Content Management Systemto determine and pay for any fees resulting from their use of thesesystems. The Transaction Processing component will allow users to payfor fees using credit cards or other supported payment methods.Significant features of the Transaction Processing component include:(a) ability to maintain business rules for use by the TransactionProcessing system to determine fees based on user type and content type;(b) ability to maintain business rules for one or more payment methodsfor use by the Transaction Processing system in handling the settlementof fees; (c) ability to maintain business rules for user account andpayment settlement conditions such as delinquency and lack-of-credit foruse by the Transaction Processing system in determining user accountprivileges and content status; and, (d) ability to process payment offees in real-time for payment methods that support real-time settlement.

Referring to FIG. 2C, the Content Screening System (41) is comprised ofa Text Screening Application 60 which searches for objectionable wordsor phrases, an Image Screening Application 61 which searches forobjectionable graphic images, a Video Screening Application 62 whichsearches for objectionable images or audio words or phrases in videosegments, and an Audio Screening Application 63 which searches forobjectionable words or phrases in audio segments. The Content ScreeningSystem can be used for both Classified Ads content and Bulletin Boardcontent. Content that has been screened by the Content Screening Systemis then transferred to the aforementioned Classified Ads Database 51 orthe Bulletin Board Content Database 57. The system also has component 64for Editorial and Customer Service Functions for Classified Ads, andcomponent 65 similarly for Bulletin Board content. These can eachinclude an Email Function to send confirmations of input, reasons forrejection of posting, suggested corrections, further processing, andposting of content to consumers using the system.

Significant features of the Content Screening System include: (a)ability to maintain a library of objectionable or illegal words andphrases for use in the screening of text; (b) ability to performautomated analysis of user content text using the text library as aninput and alert system administration personnel to the use ofobjectionable or illegal content and the use of unknown and suspectwords or phrases; (c) ability to maintain a library of objectionable orillegal image elements for use in the screening of images; (d) abilityto perform automated image recognition analysis against user contentimages using the library of image elements as an input and alert systemadministration personnel to the use of objectionable or illegal content;(e) ability to maintain a library of objectionable or illegal imageelements for use in the screening of video; (f) ability to performautomated image recognition analysis against user content video usingthe library of image elements as an input and alert systemadministration personnel to the use of objectionable or illegal content;(g) ability to maintain a library of objectionable or illegal audioelements for use in the screening of audio; (h) ability to performautomated audio analysis against user content audio using the library ofaudio elements as an input and alert system administration personnel tothe use of objectionable or illegal content; and (i) ability to savescreened content in persistent memory or storage for subsequentprocessing. Content Screening is automatically performed with theContent Management System 40 during the user process of submittingand/or creating consumer-generated content or may be performed as aprocess subsequent to the creation of content by the user.

Referring to FIG. 2D, the Content Feed System 42 and the ContentConversion System 43 provide for the transfer of user content from theContent Screening System and conversion to video content formatcompatible with the VOD Content Delivery System 44. The Content FeedSystem 42 has a Content Selection/Date Filtering Application whichselects consumer-generated content uploaded to the system that is withinthe dates contracted for posting and display of the content asClassified Ads or on Bulletin Boards. Content within the active daterange is transferred to the Active Classified Ads Database 71A or theActive Bulletin Board Database 71B.

The Content Conversion System receives consumer-generated content inindustry-standard formats or created in viewable format (HTML) on theweb-based input system and converts the content into formats compatiblewith the VOD Content Delivery System and for display on viewers'televisions. The Content Conversion System 43 has an Image ConversionApplication 72 which converts consumer-uploaded image files (inindustry-standard formats such as JPEG, GIF, TIFF, BMP, PDF, PPT, etc.)into VOD content format, a Video Conversion Application 73 whichconverts consumer-uploaded video files into VOD content format, and anAudio Conversion Application 74 which converts consumer-uploaded audiofiles into VOD content format. Content converted to VOD content formatis stored in the Active Converted Classified Ads Database 75A or theActive Converted Bulletin Board Database 75B. The content is subject toa further Production Push Function 76A, 76B and stored in the ProductionClassified Ads Database 77A or the Production Bulletin Board Database77B, if any presentation formatting, date stamping, template framing, orother system editing is required by the system.

Significant features of the Content Feed System include: (a) ability toselect user content for submission to the Content Conversion Systemthrough the testing of appropriate parameters including the date andtime information contained in the user content; (b) ability toappropriately package the elements of the user content to permit theefficient transfer of these content elements to the Content ConversionSystem through an Application Program Interface or other interface; (c)ability to create, maintain and execute a schedule for when the ContentFeed System will execute on an automatic basis for the automatictransfer of consumer-generated content to the Content Conversion System;and, (d) ability to execute the functions of the Content Feed System ona manual basis in the presence or absence of a schedule. The ContentFeed System may be able to package and distribute content to single ormultiple Content Conversion Systems.

Significant features of the Content Conversion system include: (a)ability to receive content packages delivered by the Content Feed Systemthrough an Application Program Interface or other interface; (b) abilityto process the elements of consumer-generated content into data, text,graphic, video and audio elements that are compatible with theinteractive television system and maintain the content presentationcreated by the user on the web-based Content Management System; (c)ability to save reformatted content in persistent memory or storage forsubsequent distribution and use by the interactive television system;and, (d) ability to inform the interactive television system thatconsumer-generated content is available for distribution and use. TheContent Conversion System may be added as a component system of the VODContent Delivery System, or it may be implemented as a wholly separatesystem that connects to the VOD Content Delivery System through anApplication Program Interface or other interface. When implemented as asystem that is separate from the VOD Content Delivery System, it ispossible to support multiple, different interactive television systemsby either (a) incorporating multiple formatting requirements into asingle instance of the Content Conversion System or (b) creatingmultiple Content Conversion Systems, each supporting the formattingrequirements for a specific interactive television system. Eitherimplementation allows for a single instance of consumer-generatedcontent that is created and maintained using the web-based ContentManagement System to be distributed and displayed on multiple, differentinteractive television systems with different formatting requirements.

The VOD Content Delivery System 44, as described previously, providesfor the distribution of screened, converted, properly formattedconsumer-generated content to viewers' televisions, typically throughthe use of digital set-top boxes connected to a digital cable televisionsystem capable of supporting real-time two-way data transfer between theset-top box and the Cable Head End. Significant features of the VODContent Delivery System include: (a) ability to receive properlyformatted content from the Content Conversion System; (b) ability todistribute said content over a digital cable television system anddisplay this content on television as an interactive televisionpresentation; (c) ability to receive user commands generated by aninfrared remote control device, keyboard or other device; (d) ability torespond to the user commands by displaying appropriate content orexecuting desired functionality; and, (e) ability to generate andcollect data regarding the user sessions and the viewing data regardingconsumer-generated content on the interactive television system and makethis data accessible to the Tracking System. The VOD Content DeliverySystem can employ templatized VOD content delivery, as describedpreviously with respect to FIG. 1A, enabling use of the Drill DownNavigation method in which viewers can navigate visually throughclassified ad hierarchical categories to specific titles or content.

The VOD Content Delivery System for the Classified Ads application canalso employ the Tracking System 15 for the collection and consolidationof viewing data generated by the interactive television system and thegeneration of reports against this viewing data. For example, theTracking System can track the number of viewer requests for viewing thata classified ad received in a given period and calculate billing chargesaccordingly. The Tracking System can make this information available tousers of the Content Management System as well as to systemadministrative personnel performing general analysis of interactivetelevision services and associated content. Significant features of theTracking System include: (a) ability to access and process the datagenerated by the Classified Ads application; (b) ability to formsummaries of the viewing data against desired parameters; (c) ability tosave data, summaries and reports in persistent memory or storage forsubsequent modification or access; (d) ability to make data, summariesand reports accessible by users of the web-based Content ManagementSystem, restricting the data accessible by any specific user to dataregarding the content created by that user account on the ContentManagement System; and, (e) ability to make data, summaries and reportsaccessible by to system administration personnel.

As another aspect of the present invention, implementation of a VODcontent delivery system can be made on any digital television systemthat supports real-time two-way data transfer and interactivity betweenthe digital Set Top Box and application servers and VOD servers locatedat headends or other service points within the television systemnetwork. An alternative digital television system of increasingimportance in the marketplace is Internet Protocol Television (IPTV).IPTV is a system for delivering video content, both broadcast and Videoon Demand, to digital set top boxes and other devices. IPTV and digitalcable both transmit digital video in packetized data streams withinclosed, proprietary broadband systems; however, IPTV uses InternetProtocol (IP) to structure, route and deliver the digital video packetswithin an IPTV system.

Referring to FIG. 3, an alternative implementation for a VOD contentdelivery system is illustrated for an IPTV system. The components of theVOD content delivery system listed in the figure are similar to those inFIG. 1A. However, FIG. 3 illustrates the terminology and networkarchitecture of an IPTV system as used for the purposes of thisinvention. The VOD Application Server 10, Content/Template Database 11,Video Server 12 and Tracking System 15 are located in the IPTV ServiceNode; the IPTV Service Node is equivalent to the Cable Headend in FIG.1A. Systems external to the IPTV Service Node such as the ApplicationData Center 30, Profiling System 16, Targeting System 17 and VideoContent Distribution Network 14 connect to their associated VOD ContentDelivery System components housed within the IPTV Service Node inmanners similar to those used in a digital cable system implementation.IPTV systems can use multiple network technologies within their closed,proprietary broadband network. Core and Access Network 78 arehigh-bandwidth networks connecting IPTV Service Nodes in order tosupport the central transport of video streams. The Core and AccessNetwork 78 feed the Customer Access Network 79, which supports thephysical network connection into the customer premise and connects tothe IPTV Digital Set Top Box 80. The combination of the Core and AccessNetwork 78 and Customer Access Network 79 is the functional equivalentof the Digital Cable Television System 13 in FIG. 1A.

In operation, the VOD Content Delivery System implementation for IPTV isidentical to the digital cable implementation. The VOD ApplicationServer 10 operates a VOD application for the IPTV system, for example,“automobile infomercials on demand”. The viewer sends a request forselected VOD content, such as to see an infomercial on a specific modeltype made by a specific auto manufacturer, by actuating a viewer requestsignal by a key press on the viewer's remote control unit transmittingan IR signal to the IPTV Digital Set Top Box 80 that is sent on asIP-encapsulated message through the IPTV System to the VOD ApplicationServer 10 at the IPTV Service Node. In response to the signal, the VODApplication Server 10 determines the VOD content being requested andretrieves the infomercial ad display template from the Template Database11 and video content segment from the Video Server 12, in order togenerate the corresponding templatized VOD content. In the invention,the templates are of different types ordered in a hierarchy, and displayof content in a template of a higher order includes links the viewer canselect to content of a lower order in the hierarchy. Upon selecting alink using the remote control, the VOD Application Server 10 retrievesthe template and video content of lower order and displays it to theviewer. Each successive templatized display may have further links tosuccessively lower levels of content in the hierarchy, such that theviewer can use the series of linked templatized VOD displays as a“drill-down navigation” method to find specific end content of interest.

Similarly, all previously mentioned adaptations of the VOD ContentDelivery System implementation for digital cable, such as Classified Adsand Bulletin Boards, are supported identically on IPTV implementations.

Wide Ranging Content Uploadable Via Internet to Digital TV VOD Platform

In the foregoing description, the uploading, management, conversion, anddisplay of content uploaded from the Internet for viewing on a VODplatform was described for an embodiment in which consumer-generatedclassified ads and other TV-displayable information of interest areuploaded via Internet for conversion and display as video programs oncable TV infrastructure. Even further, the principles of the inventionare applicable to a wide range of other content uploadable on theInternet and to other types of digital television service providers suchas DSL telephone lines, local area broadband networks, and wirelessbroadband networks. In the following description, another exemplaryembodiment of the present invention is described with respect touploading wide ranging content via Internet for viewing on the VODplatforms of any type of digital TV system.

Referring to FIG. 4, informational/media content from any Content Sourcecan be uploaded via Internet to a Digital TV System for placement on itsVideo-on-Demand (VOD) Platform to be viewable as TV programs on Viewers'TVs by selection from an Electronic Program Guide (EPG) transmitted viathe viewer's Set Top Box for display on the TV. Content is uploaded byan author or publisher to the Web-based Content Management System 40,which processes the content through a Content Feed System 42 and ContentConversion System 43 (from standard digital data formats to TV videoformat) to the VOD Content Delivery System 44 where it is stored in itsassociated Video Content Database 45 for retrieval upon viewer request.Uploaded TV programs are offered to viewers by listing them on the EPG,and upon viewer selection via the Set Top Box, are delivered via theDigital TV System infrastructure.

For VOD platforms, an EPG is typically presented to viewers as a programguide displayed on the TV for finding a title of interest associatedwith that particular VOD channel. The EPG display can be pulled up usingthe commonly used “Guide” button on remote control units, or an “EPG”button that indicates that the set-top box supports more advanced guidenavigation functions. The EPG display typically starts with a top levelmenu offering a vertical list or horizontal bar of broad categories ofcontent, e.g., Movies, Documentaries, TV Shows, News, Sports, CommunityEvents, Self-Help, Infomercials, etc. For example, the viewer can cursorthrough categories on a horizontal bar by using the Left/Right arrowkeys on the remote control unit, and select a category by placing thecursor highlight on the desired category title, such as “News”, andclicking the “Select” key on the remote control unit. The EPG thenbrings up the next display of subcategories available in the selectedcategory. For the “News” category, it might display subcategories of“ABC”, “NBC”, “CBS”, “CNN”, “MSNBC”, “Anywhere Reports”, etc. Uponselecting “Anywhere Reports”, the EPG would then display the next levelof subcategories down, e.g., “San Francisco”, “Los Angeles”, “Denver”,“Dallas”, “Chicago”, “Boston”, “New York”, “D.C.”, etc. This sequencecontinues until the viewer selects a program title or exits the EPG. Inorder to give the viewer a navigation experience similar to using abrowser to visit pages on a website or series of websites, the EPG canbe programmed to allow the viewer to cursor back to a higher categorylevel or go forward to a lower level previously traversed by pressingthe Up/Down arrow keys. Similarly, after the viewer has viewed aselected TV program, pressing the “EPG” button again returns the viewerto the position of the title in the EPG. The EPG display can alsoprovide visual traces or “breadcrumbs” of the categories andsubcategories traversed by the viewer to that title by displaying thehierarchical addressing sequence on a top or lower border of the TVdisplay.

The EPGs for VOD “channels” thus use program guide displays on the TVwhich are in a structured hierarchy to allow the viewer to navigate to aprogram title of interest. Upon selecting the title, a data returnassociated with that title is sent from the set-top box as a request tothe VOD platform for the program associated with that title. The EPGdatabase of the VOD platform maintains an index linking the programtitles to the addresses in the VOD Content Database 45 where therespective programs are stored. Upon receiving a request of a programtitle from the set-top box, the VOD Content Delivery System 40 retrievesthe corresponding video content from the Database and transmits it onits broadband network to the set-top box that sent the request. AdvancedVOD platforms also have VCR or DVR-like functions that enable a viewerto Pause, Play, Rewind, Fast Forward, and Stop a program using the TVremote control unit.

Hierarchical Addressing of TV Programs

In the present invention, the EPG hierarchical display structure used inVOD platforms is used as a form of “hierarchical addressing” thatuniquely allows viewer navigation to and identifies a program title ofinterest. This EPG hierarchical addressing scheme can be represented asa string of category term, subcategory term(s), and title that together(as a string delimited by standard character delimiters) uniquelyidentifying each program offered on the EPG channel. In FIG. 4, forexample, the EPG address for a program title on the VOD channel might berepresented with a TV (EPG) address as:

TV:/News/Anywhere Reporting/New York/Financial/“Live from NYSE by JimCramer”

The uploaded content may be of any digital media type and come from anyweb-based source. For the TV viewing environment, content accompanied byvideo images and voice and/or sound is preferred for presentation asentertainment or recreational viewing. Such content can be generatedubiquitously from any PC computer by an author or publisher using avideo or webcam for images and a microphone for audio. The media streamsmay be edited and composed with a multimedia program, such as MicrosoftWindows™ Media, Apple Quicktime™, Macromedia Flash™, and others.Similarly, the content may already be composed as a video program andposted on a website as a downloadable video program via a web link orpublishing point address. For example, websites like YouTube.com,Brightcove.com, and others have become very popular by offeringthousands of self-published video programs by nonprofessional authorsand publishers for viewing on the Internet. Such video content may alsobe uploaded from digital media devices such as iPod™ Video sold by AppleComputer Corp. on which it has already been downloaded from a website.It may also be uploaded from digital phone devices such as iPhone™ soldby Apple which has an on-board camera for video and microphone forsound.

The term “Internet” is intended to include any wide area digital networkor network of networks connecting a universe of users via a common orindustry-standard (TCP/IP) protocol. Users having a connection to theInternet commonly connect browsers on their computing terminal or deviceto websites that provide informational content via web servers. TheInternet can also be connected to other networks using different datahandling protocols through a gateway or system interface, such aswireless gateways using the industry-standard Wireless ApplicationProtocol (WAP) to connect Internet websites to wireless data networks.Wireless data networks are being deployed worldwide and allow usersanywhere to connect to the Internet via wireless data devices.

The Digital TV System in FIG. 4 can be of any type that supportsvideo-on-demand programming to TV viewers on any suitable type of VODplatform (infrastructure). While it may be a Cable TV system asdescribed previously, it may be any type of digital TV system providingTV services via a high-speed data connection to the viewer's TV. Forexample, it may be an Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) system of the typeconnected to home subscribers via phone DSL lines, cable or otherhigh-speed, high-bitrate connections. As previously described withrespect to FIG. 3, the IPTV system can support video-on-demand TVservices to TV viewers on a scale that cannot be supported by Internetvideo websites. The Internet is not an infinitely scalable resource, andplacing a burden such as high-bitrate, high definition, full-screenvideo streams in any significant volume can overwhelm the Internet inits present form. IPTV transmits video programs in digital format usingthe IP protocol, but instead of transmitting over common Internetconnections, it transmits over high-speed, high-bitrate connections thatare envisioned to be implemented ultimately as all-fiber optical “lastmile” connection to the home.

In the present invention, content can be uploaded via the Internet tothe Web-based Content Management System 40 of a Digital TV System andautomatically converted, navigated and selected/displayed on the VODplatform for viewing on home TV. Automatic navigation, selection anddisplay is enabled by adopting the same EPG hierarchical addressingscheme used for the VOD program guide as the addressing metadataidentifying content uploaded on the Internet. When an author orpublisher connects to the Web-based Content Management System 40, theauthor or publisher selects the category term, subcategory term(s) andtitle by which it is desired to find the program title in the TV EPGdisplay hierarchy. Thus, when the above-mentioned example of a videoprogram is uploaded, the hierarchical address for that program would beselected as:

TV:/News/Anywhere Reporting/New York/Financial/“Live from NYSE by JimCramer”.

This hierarchical addressing metadata is associated with or tagged tothe content when uploaded to the Web-based Content Management System 40,and is carried over into the VOD/EPG navigation scheme displayed on theTV. Hierarchical addressing is already well familiar to computer usersthrough the hierarchical ordering of files stored in layers of folderson computers. By carrying over the hierarchical address metadata intoEPG navigation, the invention allows the content to be automaticallylisted in the EPG under a common addressing scheme to enable viewers tofind any program of interest. The hierarchical addressing string ofterms also resembles URL addressing sequences commonly used on theInternet. Thus, Internet users can readily become familiar with findingTV programs on the VOD EPG guide due to its resemblance to finding webresources with a URL. Indeed, in the convergence of Internet and TVworlds, a TV EPG hierarchical address may be thought of as a URL for aTV program.

The uploaded content is converted, as previously described, into astandard TV digital format, and a “local instance” thereof is stored atan assigned VID address in the Video Content Database 45 of the VODplatform. The VID address is linked to the metadata title for the videocontent listed in the EPG. The hierarchical address for the title isautomatically carried over into the EPG navigation scheme, and can befound by a viewer cursoring (with the TV remote control) through the EPGfollowing the same hierarchical addressing sequence. Upon the subscriberselecting, via a remote control unit in communication with the set-topbox, the title of the video content from the hierarchically-arrangedcategories and subcategories in the EPG, a return request for theselected title is transmitted to the VOD platform for retrieving thevideo content at the linked VID address in the Video Content Database.The requested video program is then retrieved and transmitted by the VODContent Delivery System 44 through the digital TV lines to thesubscriber's set-top box for display on the subscriber's TV.

By the method of the present invention, the title and hierarchicaladdress assigned by the publisher of the program is automaticallycarried over into the TV electronic program guide (EPG) following thesame hierarchical addressing indicated by the publisher of the content.The publisher selects categories and subcategories for categorizing thetitle of the video content from the EPG categorization scheme presentedby the digital television service provider for the listing of titles onone of its VOD channels. With this method, vast numbers of contentpublishers anywhere on the Internet can upload their programs with aminimum of conversion and handling steps by the digital televisionservice provider. Home TV viewers can then easily use the EPGhierarchical navigation scheme to find something of interest forviewing.

As more and more video content becomes offered on VOD platforms ofdigital TV systems, it may be desirable to enable more robustfunctionality for the EPG including the capability to bookmark TVprograms and share TV bookmarks with other TV subscribers or evenfriends and contacts on the Internet. Bookmarking can be implemented byusing the hierarchical address as the unique address for identifying anitem of interest on the VOD platform. Such a system is disclosed in aconcurrent continuation-in-part U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/685,188 by the same inventor, filed on Mar. 12, 2007, entitled“Converting, Navigating and Displaying Video Content Uploaded from theInternet to a Digital TV Video-on-Demand Platform”, which isincorporated herein by reference.

The extension of TV VOD programming to citizen publishing, and theconvergence of Internet searching with sharing of TV program bookmarks,can also stimulate diverse new content publishing sources and supportinghardware and equipment in the converged Internet-TV universe. Forexample, TV EPGs can be exported via Internet to Internet-connecteddigital devices, including digital phones, media players, game consoles,Video iPods™, PDAs, etc., and conversely, TV bookmarks selected fromEPGs on the Internet can be imported back into the viewer's “MyEPG” or“MyVideoLibrary” for their TV through the Web-based Content ManagementSystem. This would enable people to freely select, save, bookmark, andshare TV programs with friends and contacts between their TV viewingenvironment and their daily mobile or away-from-home environments.Internet-connected DVRs, such as those sold by TiVo, or virtual DVRsoffered by the digital TV service provider can also connect Internetsearching and bookmark sharing to the viewer's “MyEPG” or“MyVideoLibrary” for VOD program viewing.

Going from Internet to the TV, a PC user can share TV bookmarks receivedby email on the PC with other contacts and friends whose email addressesare maintained in an address book or contact list on that person's emailclient. The PC user can also send TV bookmarks found in searching awebsite for program listings offered by the Digital TV System to theirown Viewer Bookmarks filed(s) or to those of other TV subscribers. ThePC user simply logs on via Internet to the Web-based Content ManagementServer 40 for the Digital TV System and selects an option to send the TVbookmark(s) to the Viewer's Bookmark file(s) for that person'ssubscriber name/user, or to the name/user of any other TV subscriber.

Dynamic Adjustment of EPG Displays for Faster Viewer Navigation

As more and more video content becomes offered on VOD platforms ofdigital TV systems, it would be desirable to dynamically adjust the EPGdisplays listing the categories, subcategories, and titles of TVprograms in a manner to minimize the number of keypresses on the remotecontrol unit needed to navigate to a program title of interest. In thepresent invention, the viewer's past history of EPG navigation and TVprogram selection are tracked, and the ordering of categories,subcategories and/or titles displayed in the EPG is dynamicallyreordered in accordance with higher relevance to the viewer. In thefollowing description, a preferred implementation of dynamic adjustmentof the EPG tracks the frequency of the viewer's selection of categories,subcategories, and titles, and reorders them in the viewer's EPG (MyEPG)for faster navigation is described.

Referring to FIG. 5, a diagram illustrates in Step 501 a typical displayof an EPG for a VOD channel. The top level display of the EPG has avertical listing (or horizontal bar) showing the names of broadcategories for the TV programs offered for viewing on demand. In thisexample, the vertical listing lists: “Movies”; “Documentaries”, “ShortSubjects”, “News”, “Sports”, “Public Interest”, and “Infomercials” intop to bottom order. In this embodiment, a button for “MyEPG” is alsooffered to link the viewer to a viewer-individualized EPG.

Upon pressing the “MyEPG” button in Step 501, the viewer is taken toStep 502 in which the first LogIn display shows a list of previouslyregistered viewers in the household subscribed to the digital TVservice. For example, in this household, two viewers “Diaz-Perez, A” and“Diaz-Perez, M” were previously registered. If the viewer selects one ofthe previously registered names, the display also prompts the viewer forentry of their selected personal identification number (PIN). If thecurrent viewer wishes to register as a new viewer in the household, theLogIn display offers the option of entering a new viewer name and PINusing the remote control unit for character spelling (numeric padstyle). Upon selecting or entering the viewer name and PIN, the viewerthen presses the button for “Go To MyEPG”.

The viewer is then taken to Step 503, where the top level display ofMyEPG shows a vertical listing of names of the broad categories for theTV programs offered for viewing on demand. However, in this example, thevertical listing has been reordered to list from top to bottom thosecategories in order of frequency with which the viewer has clicked onthem in the past, e.g., “Public Interest”, “Documentaries”, “ShortSubjects”, “Sports”, “News”, “Movies”, and “Infomercials”. Therefore,this viewer who has previously visited the “Public Interest” categorymost frequently now only needs to click the “Select” button to link tothe next level of MyEPG display. The viewer who has previously visitedthe “Documentaries” category second most frequently only needs to cursordown (arrow key) one click to highlight the “Documentaries” categorythen press the “Select” button, and so on. In a similar manner,subcategories listed on the next level of MyEPG display are reordered inorder of frequency of this individual viewer's past navigation clicks,and so on to lower subcategories and finally to individual titles of TVprograms.

If the VOD channel has too numerous category names or titles to list onany given MyEPG display level, it can also reorder the display bylisting, say, the top 7 category names or titles as a suitable number ofdisplayed choices, and all other category names or titles of lowerrelevance out-of-sight on a following page accessed by clicking the“More” button.

In this manner navigating through many options at each level of EPGdisplay can be made faster for the individual viewer in MyEPG. Once theviewer identifies him/herself to the VOD system by logging in to MyEPG,the system tracks all EPG navigation clicks as being those of thatviewer until the TV session ends or another viewer in the same householdlogs in. As a basic tracking method, the system tracks which categoriesand subcategories the viewer clicks on most frequently, then reordersthe EPG nav listing/bar to display those listed first.

As a preferred form of implementation of MyEPG reordering, the systemcan employ the hierarchical, templatized approach to “drill down”navigation to VOD items of interest as previously described with respectto advertising in FIGS. 1B and 1C. To illustrate, in FIG. 6, thedrill-down navigation in MyEPG can proceed from a top category leveldisplay in 601, to selection of a next subcategory level display 602, toselection of a further subcategory level display 603, and finally thetitles display 604, all of which have the category and subcategory namesand titles reordered in highest priority for those most frequentlyclicked by the viewer. Instead of cursoring through the list, theoptions may also be listed indexed to numbers which can be selected byone keypress of the corresponding number on the remote control unit.

Referring to FIG. 7A, an overall system architecture for a MyEPG systemincludes the MyEPG Server 702 located at or connected to a digitaltelevision system Head End. The MyEPG Server 702 processes any requestsfrom the viewer for MyEPG information to be displayed within the MyEPGdisplay templates. In the first illustration in FIG. 7A, the viewer haslogged into the MyEPG system, and the MyEPG application needs the propercontent categories to populate the MyEPG Main Menu 701. A request forthis information is sent to the MyEPG Server 702 upon performing thelogin. To process the request, the MyEPG Server 702 receives informationregarding the viewer from the User Profile database 704. The UserProfile information can include programming preferences stated by theviewer, demographic information (such as age, gender, income, geographicregion, etc.) and other descriptive information that may be useful tothe relevance algorithms of the MyEPG Server 702. The MyEPG Server 702also obtains information regarding the actual viewing habits of theviewer from the Usage History database 703. The Usage History database703 is updated whenever the viewer accesses programming content,providing a detailed log of the viewer's consumption of programmingcontent. The MyEPG Server 702 uses the information from Usage History703 and User Profile 704 to form a relevance schema by which to rank andorder the programming data provided by the EPG Data/Metadata database705. This newly reordered EPG data is packaged into a MyEPG Query ResultSet 706 and delivered to the MyEPG application for display to theviewer, using the MyEPG templates. In the MyEPG Main Menu 701, theviewer is presented with a list of categories in order of relevance tothe viewer as determined by their viewing habits.

Continuing in FIG. 7A, the viewer has reviewed the programmingcategories displayed in the MyEPG Main Menu 701 and selects the category“SPORTS”. Upon selecting “SPORTS”, the Usage History database 703 isupdated to reflect this MyEPG selection by the viewer. Similar to theprocessing for the MyEPG Main Menu 701, a request is generated to theMyEPG Server 702 for a listing of the programming subcategories for“SPORTS”. Using the information from the Usage History database 703 andthe User Profile 704, the MyEPG Server 702 selects and sorts thesubcategories for the Sports category, packages this newly ordered EPGdata in the MyEPG Query Result Set 706 and delivers it to the MyEPGapplication for display as the MyEPG Sports Category Menu 707.

Continuing in FIG. 7B, after reviewing the programming subcategoriesdisplayed in the MyEPG Sports Menu 707, the viewer continues traversingthe hierarchy of the MyEPG data and selects the subcategory“HORSERACING”. Upon selecting “HORSERACING”, the Usage History database703 is updated to reflect this MyEPG selection by the viewer. Similar tothe process described in FIG. 7A, a request is generated to the MyEPGServer 702 for a listing of the programming sub-sub-categories for“HORSERACING”. Using the information from the Usage History database 703and the User Profile 704, the MyEPG Server 702 selects and sorts thesub-sub-categories for the Horseracing subcategory, packages this newlyordered EPG data in the MyEPG Query Result Set 706 and delivers it tothe MyEPG application for display as the Horseracing subcategory 708.

Continuing in FIG. 7B, after reviewing the programmingsub-sub-categories displayed in the MyEPG Horseracing Menu 708, theviewer continues traversing the hierarchy of the MyEPG data and selectsthe sub-sub-category “GOLDEN GATE FIELDS”. Upon selecting “GOLDEN GATEFIELDS”, the Usage History database 703 is updated to reflect this MyEPGselection by the viewer. Similarly to the process described for FIG. 7Aand FIG. 7B, a request is generated to the MyEPG Server 702 for alisting of the program titles for “GOLDEN GATE FIELDS” sub-subcategory.Using the information from the Usage History database 703 and the UserProfile 704, the MyEPG Server 702 selects and sorts the program titlesfor the Golden Gate Fields sub-subcategory, packages this newly orderedEPG data in the MyEPG Query Result Set 706 and delivers it to the MyEPGapplication for display as the MyEPG Golden Gate Fields sub-sub-category709.

To arrive at the MyEPG Golden Gate Fields Menu 709, the viewer hastraversed four levels of hierarchy within the MyEPG system, using asingle processing system to handle the queries and responses required bythe MyEPG application as the viewer navigates through the MyEPGtemplates. The hierarchical, templatized nature of the MyEPG systemsupports this uniform methodology for handling any number of levels incontent hierarchy.

Continuing in FIG. 7C, after reviewing the program titles displayed inthe MyEPG Golden Gate Fields Menu 709, the viewer returns to the MyEPGMain Menu by selecting the “MyEPG” button on the display. Upon selecting“MyEPG”, the Usage History database 703 is updated to reflect thisselection by the viewer. Similarly to the process described in FIG. 7A,a request is generated to the MyEPG Server 702 for a listing of the MainMenu categories. Using the information from the Usage History database703 and the User Profile 704, the MyEPG Server 702 selects and sorts theMain Menu categories, packages this newly ordered EPG data in the MyEPGQuery Result Set 706 and delivers it to the MyEPG application fordisplay as the MyEPG Main Menu 710. The MyEPG Main Menu 710 differs fromthe MyEPG Main Menu 701 in shown in FIG. 7A as a result of new usageinformation that affects the determination of relevance. The viewer'sactivity now indicates that the SPORTS category is now the mostlyfrequently accessed category and generates the most selections of actualprogramming content. In FIG. 7A, the MyEPG Main Menu 701 had “NEWS” asthe first-ranked category; in the FIG. 7C, the MyEPG Server 702 hasdetermined that “SPORTS” is the top-ranked category, and has reorderedthe MyEPG Main Menu listings accordingly. Similarly, if the viewerselects “SPORTS”, the Sports subpage will display “HORSERACING” at thetop of the MyEPG listing, and “GOLDEN GATE FIELDS” at the top of theHorseracing subpage. However, the Golden Gate Fields subpage will listthe then current days' races because those titles will have changed withcurrent race video content uploading. To conclude the MyEPG session, theviewer selects “EXIT MyEPG” from the MyEPG Main Menu 710 and exits theMyEPG application.

As an extension to the MyEPG reordering process, the system can alsoemploy viewer preference algorithms and determine a likely reordering ofthe category names and titles based on more sophisticated criteria, suchas time-of-day, weekday or weekend, or even preferences based on pastselections of TV program titles. For example, if the viewer frequentlyviews episodes of the TV show “Columbo”, the system can reorder titlesdisplayed at the TV program selection level to list any newly available“Columbo” episodes at the top of the MyEPG display, or if veryfrequently watched, it can automatically create a category orsubcategory as the next higher navigation level to list all theavailable “Columbo” titles.

Referring to FIG. 8A, the creation by the MyEPG system of a new categorybased on past selections of TV program titles is illustrated. When theMyEPG system detects a usage pattern that could warrant the creation ofa new category, the MyEPG system informs the viewer of therecommendation. The MyEPG Main Menu 801 displays the “NEW CATEGORYSUGGESTIONS” menu item. When the viewer selects the “NEW CATEGORYSUGGESTIONS” menu item, they are taken to the MyEPG New CategorySuggestions menu 802. This menu lists the content categories that theMyEPG system has determined could further individualize the viewer'sMyEPG display and simplify the viewer's ability to access content ofsignificant interest. In this example, the MyEPG New CategorySuggestions menu 802 lists the television series “Columbo” as a newcategory recommendation based on viewing habits. Continuing to FIG. 8B,the viewer selects “Columbo” and is taken to the MyEPG New CategoryConfirmation menu 803. This menu allows the viewer to accept or rejectthe new category recommendation. By accepting the recommendation, theMyEPG system will insert the new category in the appropriate locationwithin the viewer's MyEPG display, as determined by relevance andhierarchy. The MyEPG Main Menu 804 shows the Main Menu with the new“COLUMBO” category, ranked second in terms of relevance to the viewer.Accessing the “COLUMBO” category would take the viewer to a listing of“Columbo” episodes that are available for viewing.

As the viewer navigation traverses through the hierarchically-arrangedcategories and subcategories down to individual titles for individualitems of video content, the hierarchical arrangement of categories andsubcategories is indicative of a unique hierarchical address for theitem of video content. As previously described with respect to FIG. 4,the hierarchical address may be represented as a string of category andsubcategory terms and the title delimited by standard delimiters, andused to implement a bookmarking function by which viewers can share TVbookmarks with other TV subscribers or even friends and contacts on theInternet.

The reordering of frequently selected options can also be applied to anyVOD navigation schema where the viewer's experience could be enhanced byreordering the presentation layer data within the hierarchical model tosuit the preferences of the viewer. For example, dynamic reorderingcould be applied to a navigation tree for on-demand TV programs for aspecific product area of interest, such as “Autos”, to order the listedproduct infomercials or ad information displays based on the viewer'spast history of preferences.

It is understood that many modifications and variations may be devisedgiven the above description of the principles of the invention. It isintended that all such modifications and variations be considered aswithin the spirit and scope of this invention, as defined in thefollowing claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: (a) providing, to afirst Internet-connected digital device, a viewer interface applicationconfigured to access a digital television service provider system toobtain video-on-demand electronic media content, wherein thevideo-on-demand electronic media content is obtained from avideo-on-demand content delivery system of the digital televisionservice provider system that has obtained the video-on-demand electronicmedia content and respective video-on-demand metadata associated withthe video-on-demand electronic media content, the respectivevideo-on-demand metadata comprising respective title data and respectivecategory data, and wherein the viewer interface application is furtherconfigured to provide access to an individualized electronic programguide for at least the video-on-demand electronic media content based atleast in part on (1) electronic viewing data for a first user, and (2)video-on-demand metadata; (b) receiving, at the digital televisionservice provider system for the first Internet-connected digital device,login credentials; (c) verifying, by the digital television serviceprovider system, that the login credentials are associated with a useraccount; (d) transmitting, to the first Internet-connected digitaldevice, an electronic authorization for the viewer interface applicationto access privileges associated with the user account; (e) receiving, atthe digital television service provider system via the Internet from thefirst Internet-connected digital device, a first electronic accessrequest to access the video-on-demand electronic media content; (f)accessing, at the digital television service provider system uponreceipt of the first electronic access request, a first individualizedelectronic program guide data for video-on-demand electronic mediacontent wherein the first individualized electronic program guide datais generated by: (i) accessing, at the digital television serviceprovider system from one or more non-transitory processor readablememory devices operatively connected to the digital television serviceprovider system, first electronic viewing data associated with the firstuser; and (ii) generating, at the digital television service providersystem, the first individualized electronic program guide data forvideo-on-demand electronic media content, based at least in part on (1)the first electronic viewing data, and (2) the video-on-demand metadata;(g) transmitting, from the digital television service provider system tothe first Internet-connected digital device via the Internet, the firstindividualized electronic program guide data for populating a first setof one or more templates associated with a first individualizedelectronic program guide; (h) receiving, at the digital televisionservice provider system from the first Internet-connected digitaldevice, a first video-on-demand media request for a firstvideo-on-demand electronic media content; (i) updating, by the digitaltelevision service provider system, the first electronic viewing datawith information associated with the first video-on-demand media requestto generate second electronic viewing data; (j) transmitting, from thedigital television service provider system via the Internet to the firstInternet-connected digital device, the first video-on-demand electronicmedia content identified in the first video-on-demand media request fordisplay on a first display associated with the first Internet-connecteddigital device; (k) receiving, at the digital television serviceprovider system via a closed delivery system from a tuner associatedwith the first user, a second electronic access request to accessvideo-on-demand electronic media content; (l) transmitting, from thedigital television service provider system to the tuner using the closeddelivery system, a second individualized electronic program guide datafor populating a second set of one or more templates associated with asecond individualized electronic program guide for video-on-demandelectronic media content, wherein the second individualized electronicprogram guide data is generated based at least in part upon (i) thesecond electronic viewing data, and (ii) the video-on-demand metadata;(m) receiving, at the digital television service provider system fromthe tuner using the closed delivery system, a second video-on-demandmedia request for a second video-on-demand electronic media content; (n)updating, by the digital television service provider system, the secondelectronic viewing data with information associated with the secondvideo-on-demand media request to generate third electronic viewing data;and (o) transmitting, from the digital television service providersystem via the closed delivery system to the tuner using the closeddelivery system, the second video-on-demand electronic media contentidentified in the second video-on-demand media request for display on asecond display associated with the tuner using the closed deliverysystem.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprisesthe steps of: (p) receiving, at the digital television service providersystem via the Internet from a second Internet-connected digital deviceassociated with the first user, a third electronic access request toaccess video-on-demand electronic media content; (q) generating, by thedigital television service provider system, a third individualizedelectronic program guide data based at least in part upon (i) the thirdelectronic viewing data and, (ii) the video-on-demand metadata to besent to the second Internet-connected digital device in response to thethird electronic access request; (r) transmitting, from the digitaltelevision service provider system to the second Internet-connecteddigital device, the third individualized electronic program guide datafor populating a third set of one or more templates associated with athird individualized electronic program guide; (s) receiving, at thedigital television service provider system via the Internet from thesecond Internet-connected digital device, a third video-on-demand mediarequest for a third video-on-demand electronic media content; (t)updating, by the digital television service provider system, the thirdelectronic viewing data with information associated with the thirdvideo-on-demand media request to generate fourth electronic viewingdata; and (u) transmitting, from the digital television service providersystem via the Internet to the second Internet-connected digital device,the third video-on-demand electronic media content identified in thethird video-on-demand media request for display on a third displayassociated with the second Internet-connected digital device.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the first video-on-demand electronic mediacontent is a television show.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein thefirst video-on-demand electronic media content is a movie.
 5. The methodof claim 1, wherein the first video-on-demand electronic media contentis a documentary.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the firstvideo-on-demand electronic media content is a short subject.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the first video-on-demand electronic mediacontent is a news program.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the firstuser includes a number of different persons associated with the useraccount of the first user, and wherein the first and secondindividualized electronic program guides are generated on anindividualized basis for each of the number of different personsassociated with the user account.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein thefirst Internet-connected digital device is a digital phone.
 10. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the first Internet-connected digital deviceis a computer.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the firstInternet-connected digital device is a game console.
 12. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the first individualized electronic program guide isordered by categories, and wherein the step of generating the secondindividualized electronic program guide comprises reordering at leastone of the categories of the first individualized electronic programguide.
 13. The method of claim 2, wherein the second individualizedelectronic program guide is ordered by categories, and wherein the stepof generating the third individualized electronic program guidecomprises reordering at least one of the categories of the secondindividualized electronic program guide.